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Keeping in touch when you're on the go
Keeping in touch when you're on the go
Keeping in touch with home can be a problem when you're traveling overseas. Beyond the usual hassle of changing locations and time zones, you face a bewildering variety of call-home and call-from-home options. Moreover, phone operators of all stripes—and technologies—are notorious for trying to extract your last dollar. So it's no surprise that we get quite a few questions such as this one: "Do you have a suggestion for good values on renting a cell phone for an international trip, or do you have another suggestion?" As is so often the case, a simple-looking question has several answers. Cell Phones With a cell phone, you can keep in touch, 24/7, in both directions. If you already have a GSM cell phone in the U.S. and if that phone is a "three-band" model that handles the 900 MHz bandwidth most frequently used internationally (or even better, a four-band model that also handles 1800 MHz), you can use that phone in many countries overseas. You have two options for doing this: * Ask your cell carrier to enable your phone and its number overseas. The advantage is that you keep your regular number, so that people automatically know how to reach you. That's also a disadvantage: If callers don't know you're overseas, you'll get lots of incoming calls at odd hours. Although you don't have to buy anything new, the per-minute costs of both outgoing and incoming calls are high—up to $3 per minute. * Unlock your GSM phone (if it isn't unlocked already) and buy temporary replacement SIM cards for the countries you'll be visiting. Those SIM cards include pre-paid minutes, which you can add to if necessary. Expect to pay around $20 for each card (plus minutes). You get a different number for each SIM card, which you can give to anyone who matters back home. Rates on outgoing calls are low (starting at around 20 cents per minute to the U.S.), and incoming calls generally cost nothing. Or you can get a "global" SIM card that you can use in dozens of countries for about $50, with most calls costing around 50 cents per minute. If your U.S. cell phone isn't GSM, you can rent a GSM phone for the duration of your trip in most of the world. Rentals typically start at around $20 per week, but they can run up above $50. Ttry rentacellularphone.com or travelcell.com for some rental options. Some tour operators pitch "free" cell phone rentals as extras on their tours. Regardless of rental rate, however, rates for both outgoing and incoming calls tend to be pretty high. Or you can buy a cheap GSM phone just for the trip, starting at around $50. Calling cards The simplest way to keep in touch is to use a calling card. But that covers only outgoing calls; if people back home want to reach you, they have to call through your hotel or rental unit. Calling cards work overseas the same way as cards you use here. You dial a local or toll-free number to get access to the card's long-haul service, then enter some sort of PIN, then the number you want to call. Typically, cards allow you to disconnect from one call and make another without having to hang up and start over with the access number. If you plan to remain at one number for an extended period, some cards permit you to "register" that number for automatic recognition so you don't need to enter your PIN for each call. Continued... Next Page Pages: 1 | 2 http://www.smartertravel.com/advice/...8&u=SL4F6B4DC5 === "People who are unable to motivate themselves must be content with mediocrity, no matter how impressive their other talents." -- Andrew Carnegie, 19th-century robber baron |
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